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Wednesday, May 26, 2010

I know I've said it before, but I wind up with the most random selection of technically edible products in my pantry. I specify "technically" edible, because - like the array of edible oil products out there - they won't necessarily kill you upon ingestion, but neither are they all that "real" or even tasty. However, because I'm cheap frugal to a fault, I can't bear to throw out potential ingredients in my pantry, regardless of how stomach-churning the thought of eating them alone might be.

A case in point was when I received a sampler pack of Ensure® in the mail, more than likely the result of one of my many doctor's good intentions. As healthful as is might be, the mixture of more things than I could ever hope to pronounce that fills those bottles just does not sit well with my system - literally. In fact, I remember being hospitalized and practically force-fed the stuff, regardless of the fact that ingredients like milk protein concentrate, canola oil, corn oil, and whey protein concentrate were present and were guaranteed to wreak havoc on my digestion. I'm not certain as to what the shakes tasted like, but the bad memories associated with drinking them is enough to steer me far away from anything even remotely similar.

Ironically, my mom was quite interested in the pack of shakes that arrived, stating that she was sure she wasn't getting near the proper balance of nutrients in her current diet given her high stress level and lack of lunchtime at work. I wanted to dissuade her from falling onto the "drink your calories" bandwagon, especially since I knew that with a little time I could find a way to pack a good amount of balanced, filling nutrition into an actual meal for her that would also satisfy her self-proclaimed sweet tooth. In addition to putting together some hearty, protein and whole-grain rich soups for her to eat for lunch, I continued to bake her loaves of bread - and it was in such a loaf that I finally found a use for some of that Ensure®. I didn't mention to my mom the swap I made in the recipe (adapted from King Arthur Flour), but as it rose and baked a very subtle vanilla-esque aroma emanated from the kitchen that lent just that little bit "extra" to the already awesome bread-baking feeling in the house.